Allotment Diary - Me 29hrs. He 26hrs.

Well - we managed to get three and a half hours up the allotment today - but not much to show for it!   Things take so much longer than you anticipate.

        Remember this from just over a week ago?

We spent hours clearing out the bonfire area, distributing the ashes, and starting afresh.  We had this pile in the photo left over - plus more we had accumulated.

But look at it now - it's all been burnt and cleaned up.

We haven't had any rain - so the soil has turned to dust up there as usual.  But (it's hard to see in the bright sunshine) I have removed the nets and trays that were covering the onions and shallots, as despite the dry weather, they seem to have grown and put down roots.

I don't water my plants up the allotment, they have to fend for themselves.

The broad bean plants seem to be managing.  I have found through past experience, that once you start watering them - they expect it - and often do not do as well as those plants managing without a drink.

Ok, I know, I have mowed the paths to within an inch of their lives - well scalped them would be more accurate.  The lawns grow so fast, that I decided to scalp them so that they last a week or so before I have to do them again.

The cuttings I have emptied onto the rows of potatoes as mulch.

We spread all the ash we had piled up around the gooseberries

Which are looking jolly healthy, with signs that it might be a good year for fruit from them

I am hoping for a good crop of Jostaberries this year too.   I still get a buzz knowing that I grew all my fruit bushes from little cuttings no bigger than 6 inches.  And I have given so many away too.

It does look dry doesn't it - but it'll soon perk up when we get some rain

The redcurrants, blackcurrants, and loganberry are in full leaf too

And the raspberries in the foreground are just coming into leaf

I got many barrow loads of grass cuttings, so piled them on the rows of potatoes up this end.  A pesky rabbit had been scratching at one row and nibbled on one of my seed potatoes!

Not much to show for three and a half hours work is it.  But my plot is 250ft long and 33ft wide and there are lots of paths and lawn to mow.  But mowing it all is so much quicker than having to weed or dig it over, so I am glad that I sowed all the paths - it was worth the effort.

Will be taking a break from the allotment until after the weekend - I have seeds to sow!